


Rolf Scamander and the Umgubular Slashkilter

by RedButterfly33



Series: The Adventures of Rolf and Luna [2]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Adventure, Co-workers, F/M, First Meetings, Mythical Beings & Creatures
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-26
Updated: 2018-05-26
Packaged: 2019-05-14 01:46:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,599
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14760251
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RedButterfly33/pseuds/RedButterfly33
Summary: "Gather around, everyone! Gather round!" Professor Hotchkiss said loudly, waving her hands, "And say hello to the newest addition to our team — Miss Luna Lovegood!" Mild applause echoed between the tents as the blonde girl standing next to Professor Hotchkiss waved to the expedition crew. "Miss Lovegood will be joining us for the remainder of our journey, replacing poor Abigail. Let us all make sure the same fate does not befall her and keep from provoking unidentified monkey-like species by offering them chocolate!"A few snickers echoed about. Rolf ignored them and took in the new girl. While she wore the standard khaki expedition clothes the rest of the crew did in order to blend in with the environment, there were certain embellishments one could not fail to notice. An odd cork necklace around her neck. Strange earrings made from, if he was not mistaken, dirigible plums. A bright orange flower tucked in the base of her ponytail, emitting a strong smell reminiscent of rotting eggs."That girl seems a bit loony, doesn't she," Cameron whispered in his ear, and Rolf couldn't help but agree.





	Rolf Scamander and the Umgubular Slashkilter

 

* * *

 

The creature tilted its head slightly as it grazed, giving the young wizard a better view of its fangs. Rolf wondered what use they served to a herbivore, but his pencil made a soft curve over the parchment, detailing the area around the drawing's mouth, adding his thoughts in cursive in the corner of the page.

Footsteps crunched in the dry grass, alerting the Peryton of the wizard's presence. Its head shot up, and the winged deer sprinted between the trees, fleeing danger faster than a speeding bullet. Rolf sighed in disappointment but closed his notebook, leaving the sketch unfinished.

"There you are!" a chipper voice sounded behind him. "The new girl is arriving today, Hotchkiss wants us all to be there and give her a warm welcome! Get your stuff and let's go." Another sigh escaped the young magizoologist before he could stop himself.  _Herbologists_ , he scoffed internally. It wasn't that Cameron, the cheerful member of his team and the owner of the loud footsteps that had startled the Peryton, was a bad guy, not at all. He was actually really friendly, but people like him were used to dealing with plants, not animals, and, for him specifically, 'stealth' seemed to be a foreign concept. As was 'being quiet', for that matter.

"Coming," Rolf said, gathering his things. It was useless to tell his colleague to approach him with care when around wild creatures, especially if he was holding an open notebook, for the millionth time this month. The words only seemed to stick around Cameron's head for about three minutes.

The camp wasn't too far away, and after only a short ten-minute walk, the two wizards were within earshot of their leader's shrill voice.

"Gather around, everyone! Gather round!" Professor Hotchkiss said loudly, waving her hands, "And say hello to the newest addition to our team — Miss Luna Lovegood!" Mild applause echoed between the tents as the blonde girl standing next to Professor Hotchkiss waved to the expedition crew. "Miss Lovegood will be joining us for the remainder of our journey, replacing poor Abigail. Let us all make sure the same fate does not befall her and keep from provoking unidentified monkey-like species by offering them chocolate!"

A few snickers echoed about. Rolf ignored them and took in the new girl. While she wore the standard khaki expedition clothes the rest of the crew did in order to blend in with the environment, there were certain embellishments one could not fail to notice. An odd cork necklace around her neck. Strange earrings made from, if he was not mistaken, dirigible plums. A bright orange flower tucked in the base of her ponytail, emitting a strong smell reminiscent of rotting eggs.

"That girl seems a bit loony, doesn't she," Cameron whispered in his ear, and Rolf couldn't help but agree.

"Why is her wand tucked behind her ear?" he whispered back. His friend merely shrugged.

* * *

Rolf didn't know if he preferred sweating in jungles or freezing in icy tundras, but every time he found himself in one, he always wished he was in the other. This time was no exception.

The night was so excruciatingly warm, it was just impossible to fall asleep. You'd think that after three weeks in that suffocating tent he'd be used to it, but no. He needed air.

Flipping the tarpaulin of the tent to the side, the young magizoologist stepped outside, almost groaning in pleasure when a cool breeze gently brushed his face. Taking in a deep breath and stretching, Rolf looked up to the bright dots scattered across the velvet sky. True, when it was raining it sort of ruined the experience, but sometimes there was nothing better than sleeping outside, gazing up at them as you slowly fall asleep. It was partly why he disliked large cities — the smog formed a mist so thick it made it possible to only see about half the stars. Most people were okay with it, but that was because they didn't know what they were missing. They could be looking up at the sky all night and never actually see it.

"Lumos."

The whisper startled Rolf, bringing him abruptly back down to Earth. He looked around, immediately spotting the tip of an ignited wand leaving the camp. Throwing a quick look to Professor Hotchkiss' tent, Rolf decided that catching up to the person was more important than warning the expedition leader and dove back into the tent for his own wand. It was extremely dangerous to wander about outside the camp at night, and whoever the mysterious adventurer was, they were probably going to get themselves into a heap of trouble.

Swinging his bag over one shoulder, wand clutched tightly in his fist, Rolf scrambled outside once more and took off after the quickly distancing dot of light.

Following without really looking where he was going was not the brightest idea he'd ever had, but Rolf feared that a mere glance at his feet might cause him to lose his colleague in the darkness so he pressed on, constantly tripping and catching on local vegetation. A strange squawking sound echoed in the night, making the dot freeze in place. Then the light went out.

"Wait!" Rolf hissed, sprinting forward without thinking. A bad decision in general, especially for a lanky person like him, and within seconds he found himself flat on his face, the wand rolling away as he hit the hard ground with a grunt. A foot stepped over it to stop its getaway, and a hand reached down to take it.

"Nox," the person whispered, submerging them in darkness. Soft footsteps padded to his right, and a pair of hands pulled him up to a sitting position. "Be quiet," the figure whispered in his ear. "I think that was the call of an Umgubular Slashkilter." The smell of rotten eggs hit him like a battering ram.

"You're that new girl," he whispered back. "Luna."

"Pleasure to make your acquaintance," she said, and he felt her hand take his and shake it up and down in the darkness. "Are you here to catch it too?"

"There are no such things as Umgubular—" Rolf started, but the strange call echoed in the woods once more.

"It's getting away!" Luna said under her breath, and before he knew what was happening, she was dragging him along, running after the source of the sound.

After a few minutes of blindly chasing a pipe-dream through dangerous beast-filled woods, she finally slowed and abruptly pulled him down, hunching behind what seemed to be a big fallen log.

"I think we found its lair!" Luna said in a muted voice, barely containing her excitement.

Rolf couldn't help a scowl as he rubbed his right elbow, which had grazed painfully against the rough bark. "Listen, I don't know what you're trying to catch, but my family has been studying magical creatures for generations, and—"

Luna clapped a hand over his mouth, effectively shutting him up with a hush, listening intently. The squawking repeated, and this time he saw movement out of the corner of his eye. Shifting about as quietly as he could, Rolf manoeuvred himself into a better spying position and watched as something fluttered from the treetops, whooshed elegantly through the air, then disappeared into the ground.

"Come on," Luna said, standing up carefully.

At first, Rolf just watched her creep closer and closer. Then, before he had fully realised he was moving, his legs followed, almost of their own accord. He didn't know why he did it. He did not believe in Umgubular Slashkreamers or whatever, that was for sure, but he could not deny that they were on the tracks of  _something_ , and that something could be dangerous. This new girl was going to get herself mauled, just like Abigail.

Suddenly, Luna stopped in her tracks, and her wand was in her hand again, illuminating the night. Rolf drew closer, finally seeing what gave her pause — a wide, dark entrance to an abandoned mining shaft, gaping at her feet.

His eyes darted to Luna, and he instantly knew what she was thinking. "This isn't safe… or legal for that matter," Rolf said. "You can get yourself killed."

She just turned to him and gave him a smile. "Have a little faith."

Then, without so much as a warning, Luna jumped into the darkness.

Rolf's body froze in shock.  _This girl is crazy!_  Falling to his knees, he gripped the edge of the hole and stared down, too afraid to call out her name and draw the attention of whatever was down there. A flash of light briefly illuminated the dark space as he saw her perform a Cushioning Charm, landing safely what seemed like about five or six meters below, then curiously inspecting the walls. A sigh of relief escaped him, and his head whipped back in the direction of the campsite. Well, if it was too late to go tell someone about this when she was leaving camp, it was certainly too late now.

Taking a deep breath, Rolf swung his feet into the hole and jumped after her.

"Careful not to step on those bones," Luna said nonchalantly as he landed behind her, not even half as gracefully — or soundlessly — as she had. He looked down at his feet in panic, but relaxed somewhat when he found that the bones she was referring to seemed like they belonged to small mammals. 'Somewhat' being the key word here.

"Luna, this isn't safe," he whispered urgently. "We should get out of here."

"It seems solid enough," she said, still examining the wall of the shaft, her free hand testing the stone. "I'd say it's been here since the forties, maybe fifties. I wonder what they were mining all the way out here."

"That's not what I meant," Rolf mumbled under his breath, but once again, Luna was taking off down the creepy old tunnel, and all he could do was gather his remaining wits and follow. This was starting to become a habit, and he wasn't sure how he felt about that.

"So how long have you been interested in Magizoology?" Luna asked conversationally, as if they weren't navigating a pitch-black, so-old-it-could-collapse-on-them, possibly filled with dangerous creatures mining tunnel.

"Ah… ever since I was little," Rolf said, just going along with all the insanity.

"It's not a recent thing with me either," she continued casually. "I wanted to go into journalism, initially; I found it to be rather dull, though. It's more fun trying to capture Nargles on camera than it is interviewing people about the Ministry's secret Chimera Conspiracy. Plus you get to visit all of theses exotic locations and everything. London was beginning to feel a bit suffocating. Too many people."

"I know what you mean," he said without thinking. "The city is definitely not a place for me. Luckily, my parents travelled around a lot, so—" Rolf's eyes wandered to the ground, and he stopped abruptly, extending his hand in front of Luna. "Wait." He inclined his head down. "Blood."

The vivid red spots stood out against the faded brown of the mine floor, still fresh and bright. Rolf knelt down to take a better look. Suddenly, the squawking sound echoed in the tunnel, a million times louder than it had been before. Rolf and Luna exchanged glances and lifted their wands at the ready. Proceeding with caution, the young wizard felt his stomach twist into knots the closer they got to the creature. Was it possible? Were they about to discover a new species? His palms became sweaty with excitement, forcing him to grip the wand tighter.

One more turn. The sounds were nearly on top of them now…

The two wands illuminated the end of the shaft, where a cave-in cut off the rest of the tunnel. And there, at the very end, was a nest made of large three branches, shiny stones and jewels glistening between the leaves. Pieces of pecked rocks were scattered in the vicinity, some shining with the cold grey of silver, some with the dull glimmer of gold. A large, yellow bird lay in the nest, its bloodied wing dripping scarlet onto the ground. Its weary eyes followed the magizoologists' every move, ready to attack at the slightest provocation.

"An Alicanto..." Rolf whispered in awe. "I thought they were extinct!" His hand reached for the bag at his hip, itching to get out his pencil and draw it, but he changed his mind almost instantly. The bird was injured, and the first thing he needed to take care of was its wound.

Slowly raising his wand, the young wizard whispered a sleeping spell, trying to calm the creature. The bird blinked tiredly. Once. Twice. He stopped, waiting for the charm to take full effect, then, as soon as he was sure he wouldn't get his eyes pecked out, he approached cautiously. The Alicanto breathed heavily, the wound obviously taking a toll, even in its sleep. Rolf took its wing in one hand, taking extreme care not to hurt it further, and waved his wand over what seemed to be bite marks, muttering an incantation.

"You would have made a great Hufflepuff," Luna said over his shoulder, watching him work. "Was it fun being home schooled? I've never met anyone who is."

His eyes darted to her. "Why do you think I was home schooled?" He hadn't mentioned that, had he?

"You didn't go to Hogwarts," she replied simply.

"How do you know?"

"I would have remembered you."

He scoffed. "You can't possibly know every person in Hogwarts. I'm a good few years older than you."

Luna shook her head. "I don't have to know everyone, but I would have known you. You would have joined us."

"Us?" he echoed, distracted once more with the task at hand.

"Us. Dumbledore's Army," she clarified, making him look up sharply.

"You fought in the War?" Even someone as isolated from current events as him knew what was happening five years ago. Knew of the terror, the panic. The deaths. Harry Potter, the Battle of Hogwarts, the Order of the Phoenix, those were all part of history now.

"Oh yes. It… wasn't a very pleasant time for me," she said, and for the very first time, he heard something like melancholy enter her voice. It made him feel restless somehow, wanting to make her cheerful again.

"You don't have to tell me," he said hastily. "Forget I asked." Then, in order to change the subject, he added, "I'm sorry this wasn't an Umgubular Slashkranker. I'm sure you'll get it next time." Immediately, Rolf wanted to palm his face. Why did he say that? Those things didn't exist! But when he cast a quick glance at Luna, he couldn't bring himself to take it back.

"Thank you," she said, smiling softly at him. When her attention moved to the bird, the shadow that seemed to have fallen over her eyes cleared, and she shrugged lightly. "It happens sometimes. The Umgubular Slashkilter is a very shy creature, you know. It's not unheard of for people to mistake it for something else." Then her eyes turned to the ceiling, and when she spoke that spark returned to her voice. "But I  _will_  find it someday. You'll see."

Rolf just stared at her for a second, taken aback by her confidence. A smile pulled at the corner of his mouth as he looked back down at the injured bird.

This girl really was a bit loony. But why should that be a bad thing?


End file.
